LEGENDARY SONGWRITERS KENNETH GAMBLE AND LEON HUFF ELECTED AS CO-CHAIRMEN OF THE SONGWRITERS HALL OF FAME
New York, NY – June 16, 2015 – The Songwriters Hall of Fame announced today that Legendary Songwriters and Co-Creators of the iconic “Sound of Philadelphia,” Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, have been elected by the Board of Directors as the new Co-Chairmen of the organization. In this role, Gamble & Huff will serve to link their visibility, commitment, achievement and artistic contributions to the public worldwide in the best interests of the organization and of songwriting and music communities everywhere.
Gamble & Huff were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1995. In 2014, they received the most esteemed honor, the Johnny Mercer Award, exclusively reserved for a songwriter or songwriting team who has already been inducted in a prior year, and whose body of work is of such high quality and impact, that it upholds the gold standard set by the legendary Johnny Mercer.
“I am absolutely delighted with the election of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff — among the greatest and longest-lasting songwriting teams in music history — as the Co-Chairs of the Songwriters Hall of Fame,” said President & CEO Linda Moran. “I have no doubt that the prestige and magical touch that Kenny and Leon have brought to all things musical will start a wonderful new chapter for our organization.”
“We are extremely honored and proud to serve as Chairmen of this very prestigious organization, the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Songwriting is the very core of who we are creatively in the music industry. Therefore, this Co-Chairmenship position and honor means a lot to us as we honor and proudly support all our fellow songwriters everywhere. More importantly, we look forward to working with Linda Moran and the Songwriters Hall of Fame Board of Directors to promote this great organization and its mission to honor and support its prolific array of songwriters associated with it. As we have experienced, every hit record ever produced always started with us as great Songwriters first!!!” – Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff
Gamble & Huff have been writing music together for more than 50 years. Their collaborative chemistry has generated a series of massive hits numbering more than 3,500 songs, including 30 chart pop and R&B hit singles and 50 RIAA gold, platinum and multi-platinum certifications. Their catalog includes hits such as The Supremes’ “I’m Gonna Make You Love Me,” “Don’t Leave Me This Way,” recorded by both Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes and Thelma Houston, Jerry Butler’s “Only The Strong Survive,” which was later recorded by Elvis Presley, “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” earned the songwriting duo its first Grammy® for Simply Red’s rendition, the O’Jay’s “For The Love Of Money,” and countless others, including “Me and Mrs. Jones,” “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine,” and the theme song for Soul Train, “TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia),” just to name few. The pair has won five Grammy’s® for their songwriting and collected 86 BMI Pop and R&B Awards. Gamble and Huff founded Philadelphia International Records (PIR) as the outlet for their creative vision in 1971. By 1973, PIR was second only to Motown as the largest African-American owned company in America and became the birthplace, incubator and launching pad for the Philly Soul sound, a unique blend of R&B rhythms, sweet soul vocals, deep funk grooves, pulsing horn charts and lush string arrangements with melodic structures combining elements of pop, jazz and world music.
Having met in the early 1960’s, their first collaboration was with Gamble’s band, the Romeos, which featured Gamble as lead singer and Huff on keyboard. Realizing they shared a passion for songwriting, they formed a production company and began the songwriting partnership that still exists today. Their first songs were for local Philadelphia artists, including the Soul Survivors’ biggest hit “Expressway To Your Heart,” the Intruders’ first number one R&B single and first platinum song “Cowboys To Girls,” Wilson Picket’s “Don’t Let The Green Grass Fool You” and Jerry Butler’s romantic hit “Never Gonna Give You Up.” In the first years of their label, their roster of artists included: The O’Jays, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Billy Paul, MFSB, the Three Degrees, the Ebony’s and the Futures. The pair secured a distribution deal with CBS Records and two years after its formation, Philadelphia International Records became the second-largest African-American owned music company, just behind Motown Records. By 1974 Gamble, Huff and co-publisher Thom Bell had formed one of the most successful African-American owned publishing companies called Mighty Three Music, placing more than 25 hits on the Billboard charts annually.
Throughout the 1970’s, the duo wrote for Lou Rawls, The Three Degrees, Dee Dee Sharp, Nancy Wilson, Shirley Jones and the Jones Girls, Third World, Archie Bell and the Drells and many more. In 1976, Gamble and Huff produced and co-wrote songs for the Jacksons’ first two post-Motown albums. In the late 1970’s, they collaborated on a series of successful albums for Teddy Pendergrass, who became one of the top-selling solo singers of that time. Throughout the 1980’s they continued to pen hit songs for the top soul, pop and R&B artists, including Patti Labelle and Phyllis Hyman.
By the 1990’s Gamble and Huff started to receive many prestigious accolades. In 1993 they were inducted into the Philadelphia Music Foundation’s Walk of Fame, and in 1995 they were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 1999 the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) awarded them with the Trustees Award, honoring them for their body of work, both as producers and songwriters and for their contribution to the entire fabric of popular music. In 2005, they were inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame, in 2006 they were honored with the Ivor Novello Award by the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters, in 2008 they were inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the Ahmet Ertegun Award and in 2009 they were honored at the BMI Pop Icon Awards.
Most recently, Gamble and Huff’s catalog has been covered or sampled by a vast array of artists including Jay-Z, Babyface, Nelly, OutKast, Angie Stone, Bette Midler, Mary J. Blige, Michael Bublé, Kanye West, 50 Cent and T.I., among others. Gamble and Huff’s music has also been featured in television, film and advertising for more than 30 years, including the theme songs for Soul Train and the reality show The Apprentice. Their music has also appeared on other TV programs, including Dancing with the Stars and American Idol, films such as Guess Who and The Nutty Professor, American Hustle and ad campaigns for Verizon, Old Navy, Gap and Coors.
Gamble and Huff continue to write songs together to this day. Gamble also helps to develop other writers and producers in the Philadelphia area, focusing on improving the lives of others through investments into the African-American communities, and Huff continues to write everyday while working on new R&B and Jazz style new album projects.
About The Songwriters Hall of Fame:
The Songwriters Hall of Fame celebrates songwriters, educates the public with regard to their achievements, and produces a spectrum of professional programs devoted to the development of new songwriting talent through workshops, showcases and scholarships. Out of the tens of thousands of songwriters of our era, there are approximately 400 inductees who make up the impressive roster enshrined in the Hall of Fame. The list includes Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller, Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier & Brian Holland, Smokey Robinson, Albert Hammond, Desmond Child, Paul Williams, Hal David & Burt Bacharach, John Fogerty, Bob Dylan, Isaac Hayes & David Porter, Richard & Robert Sherman, Carole King, Gerry Goffin, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi & Richie Sambora, Elton John & Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, James Taylor, Don Schlitz, Bruce Springsteen, Phil Collins, Alan & Marilyn Bergman, Loretta Lynn, Jimmy Webb, Van Morrison, Kris Kristofferson, Dolly Parton, Diane Warren, Paul Anka, Stevie Wonder, Bob Seger, Steven Tyler & Joe Perry, Leonard Cohen, Ray Davies, Donovan and Mick Jones & Lou Gramm, among many others.
Full biographies and a complete list of inductees are available at the Songwriters Hall of Fame’s Virtual Museum at http://songwritershalloffame.org/. Joining online is quick and easy: http://songhall.org/join
Ticket Information:
Tickets for the Songwriters Hall of Fame event begin at $1,250 each, and are available through Buckley Hall Events, 914-579-1000. Net proceeds from the event will go toward the Songwriters Hall of Fame programs. Songwriters Hall of Fame is a 501(c)3 organization. The non-deductible portion of each ticket is $170. Contributions, for which no goods or services are received in exchange, are fully tax-deductible as provided by law.
